Improvement in hobby-horses



J'. A. PEABO DY. HOBBY-HORSES.

No. 195,727, Patented 0ct.2,l877.

W/TNLSSES N. PETERS. PHOTO-LITHQGRAFHER, WASHINGTON. D c.

' Unrrnn STATES PATENT Orricn.

JAMES A. PEABODY, OF CHELSEA, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN HOBBY-HORSES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 195,727, dated October 2, 1877; application filed July 5, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES A. PEABODY, of horses h h Chelsea, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Rocking Carriages for Children, which invention is fully set forth in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing.

My invention relates to improvements in rocking carriages for the amusement and exercise of children, whereby the diversion and pleasure of the child are greatly enhanced; and my invention consists in a rocking carriage upon which is mounted an image or figure of one or more horses or animals, in such manner that a motion may be imparted to them by the child occupying the carriage independent of, or in addition to, the rocking movement of the carriage, and, on the part of the child, in imitation of driving, and of the natural animation of such animals as are thus represented.

It further consists in the combination of an alarm with such images, so that the same may be sounded by their said movement.

It also consists in certain details of construction and arrangement of parts whereby the child is enabled to impart such additional or independent movement to the said mounted images.

It also consists in various other details of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts of the rocking carriage, all as hereinafter fully set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of said carriage and the images mounted thereon. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detached section on line a: as, Fig. 2.

The body of my improved rocking carriage is composed of side pieces a b, constructed in rocker form, and may be of any suitable mate rial and fancy design, and secured together by cross slats or boards; of a seat, 0, mounted upon said rockers; and a hinged drop leaf or guard, 01, to keep the child upon the seat, and also to serve as a toy table to support playthings attached to a back, 0, which may be formed in imitation of a carriage-dasher.

Upon the cross boarding or floor of the forward end of the carriage is mounted a frame or box, f, into the sides of which is journaled the rocking shaft g, to which the images of are attached. From shaft 9 there F extends downward an arm, 1', Fig. 3, which, at 3 its lower extremity, plays upon a pivoted horizontal rod, j, and against a spiral spring, k. Attached to the front side of box f is a roll, l, and upon the top of the box another roll, i From the imitated harness or headstall upon 1 the heads of the images there are extended cords or reins n, which pass down from the horses heads to and around roll I, and thence up to and over roll m, as shown, and extending back to within reach of the child on the carriage-seat. These reins, when pulled upon by l the child with sufficient force to overcome the resistance of spring k, cause the horses heads to be rocked forward and downward by reason of the turn around roll l, and the arm 1? is thereby pressed backward against said spring; and when said strain upon the reins is released said spring promptly reacts, and, through said arm and shaft g, causes the horses to rock back again into their resting position. Thus a lively gallop may be imitated on the part of the horses when the reins are rapidly jerked or alternately pulled and slackened by the child in the carriage, and the childs rocking exercise is thereby greatlyenlivened, and his pleasure enhanced and, to increase the childs interest in the carriage, and make it still more entertaining, I add a simple alarm mechanism, the bell of which is caused to sound by the said rocking movement of the horses, as I will now describe. This alarm mechanism is attached internally to one of the sides of box f, Fig. 3, and is composed principally of a plate, 0, pivoted to the side of the box at p, a gong, q, attached to said plate, a pivoted lever, 1", having arms 8 s, and two spring striking-arms, t t, fastened to the plate at a. From shaft g, to which the figures of horses are attached, there depends a bent wire, n, which, as the horses and their shaft are rocked, as described, comes in contact with the lever 1, and rocks it upon its pivot 10, and thereby, through its arms 8 s, actuates the striking-arms t t. As the wire 0;, in its said movement, brushes against and past the lever r it carries said lever over until the wire passes beyond the reach of the lever, and at the same time causes the striking-arms t t to approach each other until lever r is released from wire Q), When the spring force of arms t 1 causes them to suddenly react, thus striking and sounding the gong q, and restoring said lever r to its vertical position again. A reverse movement of the wire 1* again moves lever r in the opposite direction with like efl'ect.

When it is desirable to avoid sounding the alarm while the horses are rocking it may be done by simply swinging the alarm mechanism 011 its pivot 11, so that the lever T will be constantly out of range of wire 2'. For this purpose a stud, z, is connected with the alarm, and projects outward through the curved slot 3 Fig. l, in the side of box f, and has a suitable nut or head aflixed thereto to keep the parts in place. By moving this stud in said slot the alarm mechanism may be thrown out of and into range with the operative wire v, as indicated in Fig. 1, and as described.

When the child is to be placed in or gets in the carriage the hinged drop leaf or guard d is turned up, as indicated by the dotted lines, and when the child is seated in the carriage said leaf is then turned down, and serves to guard and keep the child from slipping or pulling itself off the seat in the act of driving or operating the horses, as described.

I do not wish to confine myself to the particular movement of the horses, or to the details of construction herein described.

What I claim as my invention is- 1. A rocking carriage having one or more images of horses or other animals mounted thereon in such manner that motion may be imparted to such images independent of the rockin gmovement of the carriage, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

2. In a rocking carriage, the combination of the pivoted images h h and devices for actuating the same, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a rocking carriage, the combination of the pivoted images h h, arm i, actuating-spring k, rolls or bars I and m, and reins n, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

4. In a childs rocking carriage having movable images mounted thereon to be operated by the child, as described, the hinged seat-guard d, combined and arranged to support the child on the seat, substantially as specified.

5. In combination with such rocking carriage and independently-movable images, an alarm mechanism orbell arranged to be sounded by the movement of the images or carriage, substantially as described.

6. In combination with such movable images, mounted upon a rocking carriage, an adjustable alarm-bell so arranged as to be sounded by the movement of the images, or thrown out of contact therewith, substantially as specified.

7. In a rocking carriage, the combination of the rock-shaft g with its pendent Wire '0, the pivoted lever r with its arms s s, the spring striking-Wires t t, and the gong q, all operating together, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

JAMES A. PEABODY. Witnesses:

EUGENE HU'MPHREY, T. W. PORTER. 

